


Attention Please

by shipskicksandgiggles



Series: Midnight Milkshakes [11]
Category: Iron Man (Movies), Marvel Cinematic Universe
Genre: Alternate Universe - No Powers, Bisexual James "Rhodey" Rhodes, Bisexual Tony Stark, Fluff, Fluff and Humor, Friends to Lovers, Getting Together, Idiots in Love, Jealousy, M/M, Minor Pepper Potts/Natasha Romanov, Tony Stark Doesn't Get Jealous, Tooth-Rotting Fluff, mentions of past relationships - Freeform
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-02-28
Updated: 2021-02-28
Packaged: 2021-03-12 16:48:02
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,104
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29762640
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/shipskicksandgiggles/pseuds/shipskicksandgiggles
Summary: There's this one tactic that Rhodey's been trying to use to get Tony to notice him. Somehow, he failed to notice that Tony doesn't get jealous.
Relationships: James "Rhodey" Rhodes & Tony Stark, James "Rhodey" Rhodes/Tony Stark, Minor or Background Relationship(s), Pepper Potts & Tony Stark
Series: Midnight Milkshakes [11]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1635325
Comments: 2
Kudos: 42





	Attention Please

**Author's Note:**

> I was INSPIRED to write this last week and I'm dying now so I hope yall enjoy

“Question.”

“Personal or business?”

Pepper perched herself up on one of the breakfast bar stools. “Personal, we’re off the clock.”

“Wonderful. What’s going on?” Tony didn’t even pause prepping dinner. 

“When was the last time you got jealous?”

That made him pause. “Of who?”

“Anyone.”

“Context?”

She stole a candy from the bowl he kept on the counter. “I mean, I was thinking in terms of romance, but I’ll take whatever you got.”

Tony frowned and whisked some spices together. “I don’t remember.”

“You don’t remember?”

He shook his head. “I don’t know what to tell you, Pep. I don’t make a habit of getting jealous of people.”

“No, no, I’m sure you’ve gotten jealous. What was his name, that guy from your first year of college?”

“Who, Ty?”

“Yeah him! Didn’t you like him?”

“What are you, 12?” Tony muttered. Truth is, he had liked Ty. He was older and charismatic, and gave Tony all the attention a neglected kid would want. Still, he conceded the point. “Sure, I liked him. What’s that got to do with anything?”

“He told you about that girl he dated didn’t he?”

“Everheart? Yeah, he told me all about her. I proofread the note he asked her out with.”

“And you never got jealous?”

He shrugged. 

“Then what about that one girl who rejected you for Rhodey?”

Oh yeah, funny day. “I didn’t know she existed until she looked at my face and said ‘Ew’, Pepper. That was a day and a half for all of us. Anyways, I prefer men and she turned out to be a lesbian. No hard feelings.”

She gave him a look. “I’m not saying it was him you were jealous of.”

“Pepper, knock it off. Nothing ever happened-”

“But it-”

“Moving. On.”

“Fine. Sunset-”

“-Was still in love with her ex. Wrong place, wrong time.”

“Justin-” 

“Hey now, he actually asked me out.”

“And then played with your heart until you stopped talking to him.”

“Rhodey blocked his number in my phone,” Tony corrected. 

“You never got jealous about any of us for being in relationships,” she pointed out. 

“Well it’s not like I was ever under the illusion that I was going to be in a relationship with any of you. Do you have a point?”

“Yes! Why don’t you get jealous about this stuff?”

The kitchen timer went off, and he transferred the tofu he was working with into a marinade before shoving it into the fridge and grabbed a covered bowl off the counter, unveiling it to reveal bread dough. He tipped it onto the counter and started kneading. 

“I cared about them, Pep. For better or for worse, I cared about their feelings. And the best way to keep them happy was to support them no matter what. So no, I didn’t get jealous and I stayed their friend until they ditched me because even if I couldn’t be the person they loved in the way I wanted, I was still there for them and that was enough.” He started dividing the dough in pieces and refused to look Pepper in the eye. “Plus, in that case with Rhodey, I wasn’t about to be jealous of him for going out with a girl who was disgusted with me. I think he felt worse about it than I did.”

She sighed. “You care too much.”

“I know.”

“Also you used to be into some toxic ass bitches.”

He burst out laughing. “That’s one way to put it, yeah.”

“Hey, listen I gotta go, but this has been an enlightening conversation.”

“Woah, hey, where are you rushing off to?”

“I have a date,” she smirked. 

“You do? I thought you just had dinner plans with Nata-” He gasped. “Virginia Potts, why didn’t you _tell me?”_

“She fucking told you we had dinner plans?” Pepper hissed. “Fuck.”

“JARVIS as my witness, I think Rhodey just lost a bet.”

“What bet?”

“The bet on when you were going to come out as not-straight. I had it pegged for within the next few months. Rhodey had into next year. I might have to rethink my no-jealousy clause now, actually. I’m just saying, we’re still on the table, honey.” 

She leaned over the counter to smack him upside the head. “You’re a menace.”

“I would be _your_ menace, but you decided to finally start dating the girl we all knew you were pining after.”

“I have to _go,_ Tony.”

He held out his hand. “We’d have been a fantastic couple in another life, Ms. Potts.”

“I pity that version of us, Mr. Stark.” She shook his hand and started to walk out the door. “By the way, can you keep this-”

“On the down low? Secret’s safe with me.”

She looked relieved. “Thanks Tony.”

After she left, he continued where he left off. The bread had to rest for another hour and a half before baking, so he had some time. 

~~~

“Hey, have you seen Pepper?”

Tony started. “Jesus Christ, where did you come from?”

Rhodey stood in the doorway and chuckled at Tony’s reaction. “The elevator. What are you making?”

“Trying something new. Tofu based, should be good.”

“And the bread?”

“Saw a milk bread recipe I’ve been wanting to try,” he shrugged. “I had a long day, so I wanted to bake something.”

Rhodey hummed and glanced at the mess in the kitchen. “Pepper?”

Tony scrunched up his nose. “In bread? Platypus, please.”

“No, our Pepper. Where is she?”

“Oh, she had plans. Passed through a little bit ago and didn’t stay long.”

“Wasn’t she supposed to go out with Nat tonight?”

Tony hummed as he wiped down the counter, but he said nothing. 

“You’re kidding.” He dug his phone out of his pocket. 

**From Rhodey: You’re finally going out with Nat and you didn’t tell me?**

**From Pepper: Are you with Tony? I told him not to tell people**

**From Rhodey: Yes I am, but he didn’t say anything. I’m just smart like that**

**From Pepper: Incorrect. You’re an idiot**

**From Rhodey: Excuse you, I graduated from MIT before I was legally allowed to drink**

When she didn’t respond right away, he set his phone down and sighed. “How much do I owe you?”

“$50 and your mom’s chili recipe.”

“God fucking damn it.” 

“I can’t believe all I needed to finally learn your family secret was for our friends to be idiots! See, this is why I keep you people around.”

Rhodey grumbled as he pulled out his wallet. “I’ll get you the recipe later,” he said as he slammed a few bills on the table. 

Tony whooped and pockets the money before scanning the kitchen. “Aw man.”

“Want help?”

“Yes please.”

He walked around the bar and picked up a rag. “Where should I start?”

~~~

With the two of them working, the kitchen was clean in no time. He watched Tony check his timer and nod. 

“I don’t have to do anything for another 30-ish minutes if you want to watch _Parks and Rec_ with me.”

Rhodey wiped off his hands and tossed the rag in the bin under the sink. “God forbid I leave you alone with your damn sitcoms.”

“Don’t act like you don’t love this show. You’re a real Ben Wyatt some days, you know.”

He rolled his eyes, but settled into the couch next to Tony anyways while he pulled up the show. “It’s just so weird.”

“That’s the charm, babe.”

Pepper was still radio silent, but Rhodey pulled out his phone anyways. 

“You staying in tonight?” Tony asked. 

“Probably.”

“No dates planned?”

Dating apps fucking sucked honestly. Rhodey doesn’t know why he uses them. “No, can’t find anyone.”

“That’s fair. Wanna rewatch _Rocketman_ later?”

“Is that a question? Yes always.”

Tony laughed and curled up on the other end of the couch, still poised to run to the kitchen if need be. 

Rhodey was only half-paying attention to the show. Season 4 was a frequent rewatch for them, so he didn’t need to focus super hard on it to know what was going on. His focus was more on his phone as he loaded up his dating profile. 

“You’re not watching.”

He glanced between Tony and the TV. “Sue me for trying to find a date this weekend. It’s been awhile, you know?”

“That’s more than I needed to know actually. Show me their profile before you swipe right so I can make sure they pass muster.”

He nodded before continuing to scroll. Everyone the app showed him looked exceptionally boring. “How’s this guy?”

Tony took his phone and immediately handed it back. “If he can’t wear jeans that fit right, he’s not good enough for you.”

“His jeans fit. What are you- Oh never mind you’re right.” He swiped left and showed Tony a few more people. 

~~~

“Her foundation is two different colors, you don’t need that shit.”

~~~

“No, we’ve talked about this. Men named Steven are Bad News, with a capital B. And I mean that for all spellings of the name.”

“Tony, that was one time-”

“It was six times, I fucking counted.”

~~~

“Oh lord, _I_ went out with him.”

“And you remember this guy why?”

“Rhodey, I went out with him 10 years ago. I _remember_ because he was the worst sex I’ve ever had, and he was too much of a narcissist to change anything about himself.”

“But 10 years-”

“I slept with him and I have notoriously bad taste. No.”

~~~

“Oh he’s cute. His eyebrows look great.”

“Your ability to judge people based on their eyebrows is unparalleled.”

“I know. If you’re going to swipe right on anyone tonight, he’s your best bet.”

Rhodey hummed and took his phone back. It seemed to be just in the nick on time too. Pepper texted him back right before he could swipe. 

**From Pepper: That doesn’t matter when you didn’t realize the guy whose attention you’ve been vying for doesn’t get jealous**

Doesn’t… doesn’t get jealous? He snuck a look at Tony and found his gaze transfixed to the TV, laughing at something Ron said. 

“Hey Tony?”

His head swiveled towards him. “What’s up?”

“When was the last time you went on a date?”

“Uh,” he seemed to think about it and breathed out a long sigh. “It’s been a while I guess.”

“Yeah I know that, but how long?”

“Maybe 6 years? It’s not like I have the time to meet people, and I’m not one for dating apps like you are.” A timer went off and Tony paused the episode before wandering back into the kitchen. “Why, did you see someone I might like?”

“No, just realized I don’t remember the last time you had someone on your arm is all.”

“There’s nothing wrong with that, you know. I have a life, and I have friends too. It’s not like everything’s about romance.”

He snorted. “Obviously I know that, but I don’t even remember the last time you expressed interest in someone.”

Tony set the knife he was holding down slowly. “Are you okay?”

“Yeah. Why wouldn’t I be?”

“It’s just… you and Pepper are both asking me questions about my love life and neither of you seem to have a point. Did that machine I built last week go off in your faces and make you fixate on romance in a junior high-esque type of way? Because I have Bruce on speed dial if you need help.”

“I’m fine, Tones.”

“You’d tell me if you weren’t, right?”

“You know I would.”

He nodded, seemingly satisfied with his answer and went back to chopping vegetables. Rhodey didn’t say anything else, just studied his face carefully. 

Tony never got jealous. It was obvious now that he thought about it. Every time any of their friends had been in a relationship, Tony was relentlessly supportive until things fell apart. When the people he expressed interest in went for someone else, Tony stayed until he was no longer welcome, just to be their friend. He wasn’t malicious about anything, wasn’t dramatic about it, never cried on anyone’s shoulder about not getting the guy. 

“What was that?” 

Tony asked him a question and he’d missed it. “Did you match with the guy?” he repeated. 

Rhodey reopened the app to the face he’d been considering going out with before the text from Pepper. He swiped left and closed out the app before deleting it from his phone entirely. 

“Nah, I don’t think it’s meant to be.”

~~~

One thing about Tony was that he was inexplicably good at everything. “There’s a myth you don’t know how to cook.”

“Is there?” Tony smiled as Rhodey took another bite of the dish. “It’s probably because of the omelette incident, right?”

“That or the stereotype of the rich kid who had everything done for them,” Rhodey shrugged. “It’s not their fault they don’t know you were raised by Ana Jarvis’ cooking.”

“It’s a love language,” Tony sighed. “Family means food, and I’d never poison my family with bad cooking.”

“God, but what a way to go.” He snagged a bite of food off Tony’s plate. 

“Ah ah ah, you have your own. If you want more, there’s more on the stove,” he tutted. “I know for damn sure your mama didn’t raise you to not mind your manners.”

“I regret letting you meet my mother.”

Tony winked. “Please, she loves me.”

“Yeah, more than me most days, and I’m her fucking kid.”

“As if Peggy didn’t immediately try to adopt you back in the 80s. Legally, you can’t be gay unless you get adopted by your best friend’s parental figure at some point.”

“I thought that was a rule with significant others.”

“Who came up with that rule? Also you have sisters. Your significant other will die.”

“You have Nat. I’m lucky _I’m_ not already dead.”

“It’s because she trusts you.”

“She does?”

“Yeah.”

“Since when?”

He shrugged. “Since she met you. She knew you were a good person and you weren’t afraid to speak your mind. That means a lot to her.”

“I met her because you were being stupid.”

“What else is new? Help me put away the leftovers, won’t you?”

~~~

Everything came back to how much Tony cared. 

“You made my popcorn with Junior Mints?”

“Just how you like it, Honey Bear.”

Rhodey had been gone for all of five minutes to put on comfy clothes to watch movies in, assuming Tony was doing the same. 

Which he had. He just… also made popcorn the way Rhodey prefers it. Go figure. 

“C’mon, movie’s starting.”

He sat on the other end of the couch and tucked his legs to one side. 

Elton John was always one of Tony’s comfort artists. 

This meant Tony was, for the most part, distracted. Rhodey had forgotten to grab himself a blanket when he sat down, so he tried to move his feet a little closer to Tony when he wouldn’t notice. 

By the time _Saturday Night’s Alright For Fighting_ started playing, he’d almost succeeded. 

Unfortunately, _Saturday_ is Tony’s song. Which meant he wants to dance. 

“Platypus…”

“Tones…”

Tony practically dragged him to his feet and made Rhodey twirl him. “Please?”

And because Rhodey couldn’t ever say no, he danced with him. They weren’t good by any means, but it was fun. They were laughing. 

By the end of the song, they wound up chest to chest, only heaving slightly from the exertion. 

There was a light flush on Tony’s cheeks, and his mouth was slightly open. Gorgeous. 

~~~

Nat knew. Well, she knew everything, but she could read Tony like a book. So she knew. 

He’d been gone on Rhodey since he was 16 years old. 

She found out when they were 20. She’d had her suspicions after the Air Force Lesbian incident she had told him, but Tony hadn’t wanted to say anything to confirm or deny his feelings.

It hurt every time Rhodey found someone to go out with, but he always thought jealousy was an ugly emotion. It didn’t suit him. He tried to be supportive instead. 

It worked. 

Still, looking up at him, still panting a little from them dancing, he felt that dull pain in his chest all over again. This wasn’t something he could have. 

“Tony?”

“Hmm?”

Nat always called him a coward for not doing anything. She was right. It would be easy to just-

“Tony.”

He shook himself back to the present, and started to move away. “Sorry, I-”

Rhodey caught his wrist in his and spun him back. “Maybe I want to keep dancing with you.”

“Oh, okay.”

Neither of them moved. 

“I don’t think this qualifies as dancing, Tones. I need your lead here.”

The music coming from the TV was overlapped by talking. It was hard to hear the rhythm. 

He didn’t need one. 

Their first kiss was soft, almost hesitant. 

The weight in Tony’s chest got heavier. His heart constricted in his chest. Oh god, what if that wasn’t what Rhodey meant-

And then Rhodey was pulling him closer and ducking down to kiss him again. _“Fuck,_ I was so stupid.”

“You-” _kiss_ “-were stupid?” _kiss_ “I don’t-” _kiss_ “I was-”

Rhodey shushed him before kissing him long and hard. He leaned back to look at the ceiling, giving Tony access to his jawline. “All I ever wanted was for you to notice me.”

“I always notice you.”

“Wanted your attention.”

“You had it. _Have_ it.”

He let out a shaky laugh and rested his head against Tony’s. “How long?”

“Remember the day we invented DUM-E?”

“That long ago?”

“A week before we finished the code I was using you as a rubber duck. At some point I started cussing it out, and you started laughing at me and I just looked over at you and I knew. Hit me like a train, but I knew I loved you.”

“And you never said anything?”

He shook his head. “Didn’t think you’d feel the same.”

“Do you remember back when you were 19? When Justin started fucking around with you?”

Tony groaned. “Don’t remind me.”

“I thought someone punched me when I saw someone else’s arm wrapped around you. I didn’t realize until two years later that it wasn’t because I wanted to protect you.”

“You’re telling me I could have had this since we were 21?” Tony asked incredulously.

Rhodey’s silent laughter shook both of them, and Tony took the time to admire how happy he looked. 

“We’re idiots.”

“Oh yeah.”

“We also have lost time to make up for. JARVIS, pause the movie and back it up to right after _Saturday._ We can finish it later.”

**Author's Note:**

> okay so half way through editing this, I randomly remembered RDJ's connection to Elton John and DIDN'T MEAN to make myself cry at 1am but it's fine I'm fine
> 
> if you wanna chat, leave a comment or come find me on [tumblr](https://www.tumblr.com/blog/playboyphilanthro-pissed)


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